Wrench.



- Patented July l0, I900. J. J. BARCLAY. I

W B E N C H (Application filed Dec. 15, 1899.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES;

' ATENT FFIC.

JOHN JAMES BARCLAY, OF ELIZABETH, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR'TO MILTON QUAY, OF SAME PLACE.

WRENCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 653,541, dated July 10, 1900.

Application filed December 15, 1899. Serial lilo-740,447. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that I, JOHN JAMES BARCLAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Elizabeth, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Wrench, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

One object of this invention is to provide a simple quick-acting wrench comprising only a shank with a fixed jaw, a movable jaw, and a retarding-spring for the movable jaw.

A further object of the invention is to so construct the shank and the opening in the movable jaw receiving the shank that the said movable jaw maybe unobstructedly carried to or from the fixed jaw and so that the movable jaw will remain fixed on the shank as long as it is subjected to forcible engage ment with a nut, pipe, or other object to be operated upon.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved wrench. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, the movable jaw being in section and a portion of the handle broken away. Fig. 3 is a transverse section through the shank of the wrench,taken just above the movable jaw; and Fig. 4is a side elevation of a portion of the shank of the wrench and the fixed jaw and a section through the movable jaw, illustrating the manner in which these two jaws are constructed when the wrench is to be used as a pipe-wrench.

The sides 10 of the shank A are inclined toward the front from the back and in direction of each other, whereby the shank in cross-sec tion is practically triangular, as illustrated in Fig. 3, the two sides having usuallyalike inclination. A handle 11 is secured at one end of the shank and a jaw 12 is fixed at the opposite end of the shank, while a second jaw 13 is mounted to slide on the shank. This jaw is not operated by a lever, as is usual, or by a revoluble nut, but is adapted to be moved up and down the shank by hand. To this end the movable jaw 13 is provided with I an opening 14, which receives the shank, the opening corresponding to the cross-section of the shank, as is also shown in Fig. 8; but the opening 14 in the movable jaw 13 is of greater length from its back wall to its front Wall than the cross-sectional depth of the shank A of the wrench from front to back, so that the contracted portion of the opening 14 in the movable jaw extends beyond the front edge of the shank A. This lengthening of the open-' ing 14 in the movable jaw enables the said movable jaw to have a rocking or vertical movement to a greater or a less extent, but the side walls of the opening 14 in the mov= able jaw conform to the sides 10 of the shank A to such an extent that the jaw 13 may be freely slid up and down the shank or to and from the fixed jaw 12.

In order that the movable jaw lid-may be held wherever it is adjusted on the shank A, a spring 15 is employed, which extends longitudinally along the back of the shank A and through the back portion of the opening 14 in the movable jaw. The outer end of the spring 15, or the end which is adjacent to the fixed jaw 12, is free or unattached, While the lower end of the spring 15, which is usually placed near the handle 11, is secured to the shank through the medium of a screw 16 or equivalent means.

When a wrench is constructed as above described, the movable jaw is carried along the shank either toward the handle or toward the fixed jaw by hand until it engages with the nut or other object to be loosened or removed, and when such a contact is obtained it is simply necessary to employ the shank A of the wrench as a lever to loosen or remove the article between the jaws, since the pressure that is brought to bear on the movable jaw through the object between it and the fixed jawwill cause the movable jaw to so bind against the inclined portion ofthe shank that the said movable jaw remains rigid and practically locked in its adjusted position; butwhen the movable jaw is relieved from pressure it may be slid along the shankA as readily as if the wrench were not in service.

When the wrench is to be used as a pipewrench, the fixed jaw 12 is preferably provided with a concavity 17 in its under face, as shown in Fig. 4, and the opposing surface of the movable jaw 13 is provided with teeth 18.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure byLetters Patent- 1. A wrench comprising a shank having its sides transversely beveled in direction of each other, the shank being provided with a fixed jaw, a jaw mounted to slide on the shank to and from the fixed jaw and having an opening for receiving the shank, the opening being of similar cross-sectional shape but longer than the transverse depth of the shank, and a retarding device for the movable jaw.

2. A wrench consisting of a shank having an essentially triangular cross sectional shape and a fixed jaw at one of its ends, a movable jawmounted to slide onthe shank, the opening in the movable jaw receiving the shank being of similar cross-sectional shape to the shank but of such length that the openin g extends beyond the front of the contracted portion of the shank, and a spring attached to the back of the shank at one of its ends, which spring extends freely in the direction a of the fixed jaw and through the back por:

tion of the opening in the movable jaw, as described.

3. In a wrench,a shank having transversely tapering sides and a fixed jaw at one end, and a spring-controlled sliding jaw capable of free movement on the shank and of locking engagement with the shank when subjected to pressure by an article introduced between the two jaws, as set forth. 

